A First for George Foreman: Signing a Train
Friday, July 18, 2008 2:53 PM
George Foreman, the two-time World Heavyweight Boxing Champion turned electric grill entrepreneur, minister and author, has added another first to his sterling list of accomplishments.
On Wednesday, Big George stepped into a boxing ring in front of a METRO train and autographed a giant photograph of himself that is wrapped around one of METRO's trains.
It's all part of our I Ride campaign - an advertising campaign featuring Foreman, Astros' outfielder Carlos Lee, and fashion designer Chloe Dao. The 30-second commercials featuring each celebrity showcases METRO as a reliable, inexpensive and yes - even glamorous way- to get where you need to go.
The commercials were written and produced by Robert Fritsche, senior writer/producer at METRO. When he and Karl Koch, METRO's Manager of Creative Services, were brainstorming recently on ways to get more mileage out of the campaign, an idea was born.
"We started talking, ‘Why don't we get him to autograph a glove for Frank (Wilson)?' Then it was, ‘Hey, why a glove? Why don't we get him to autograph a train?'" recalled Koch.
That off-the-wall idea became a reality on Wednesday when the Hall-of-Fame boxer emerged from a train with METRO President and CEO Frank J. Wilson, and both stepped onto a boxing ring before Foreman signed the train with a giant, permanent-ink Sharpie pen.
"We were extremely pleased with the turnout of the media. George felt that everything we did was top-notch. It was exciting to see a legend stand in the ring, helping represent METRO," said Fritsche, who coordinated the event.